Like many players, even the Americans, Gabby Williams plays two seasons each year. The first in France or Europe, then the second in the WNBA during the summer. However, sometimes the calendars collide and the WNBA has decided to put an end to this problem, with a logic of “priority” to be given to one of the two clubs.
Clearly, WNBA players must be present in their squad at the start of the training camp or on May 1, at the latest, under penalty of being fined. Above all, if they miss the start of the season, they will be completely suspended for the season!
This summer, Gabby Williams should have missed the WNBA season since she played in the finals with ASVEL until mid-May. But injured, she was released from her contract, allowing her to return to the Seattle Storm.
In order to avoid the same problem in 2024, and because the Olympic deadline is coming and will shake up the WNBA calendar (the training camp will start earlier), it has already announced that it will skip the next season in the United States .
“2024 does not seem possible, especially because of the priority clause, and the season in France is long. And even if I had to come back, there would be the Olympic Games in Paris in August,” she explains to ESPN. “But in 2025, I plan to come back. »
The same for Marine Johannès?
Selectable for the Paris Olympic Games, after her absence from the Euro this summer and the controversy that followed, Marine Johannès should also make an important choice next summer.
Because if we follow the rules explained by The Athleticas the native of Lisieux will have three seasons in the WNBA in her legs in 2024, the minimum for the “prioritization rule” to apply, then she will be in the same situation as Gabby Williams.
She will probably also have to skip the American season. Especially since Jean-Pierre Siutat, the president of the French Federation, had announced that “ if a player leaves for the WNBA before » the preparation launched at the beginning of June, then “she won’t be part of the team “.
